Pretty Girl
by LaLa Land 14
Summary: When Sam's half sister moves to La Push to stay with him, he doesn't anticipate her falling for his exgirlfriend's brother.
1. Prologue

The sounds of furniture being moved down the hall in their small, cozy cottage awoke Emily from her slumber and she sat up rubbing the sleep from her eyes. With a glance at the clock on their bedside table, she stands and slips her cotton robe on to combat the chilly morning air as she pads barefoot down the hallway to the guest room. She leans against the doorway for a moment and smiles seeing Sam easily holding the twin bed frame up so he could maneuver his way around it with the vacuum.

Sensing her, he gingerly lowers the bed to the floor and turns the vacuum off, walking over to his imprint and tenderly kissing each of the scars that marred her face. "Good morning, did I wake you up?"

"I needed to be up anyway, we have a big day ahead of us." Emily smiles, the unscarred side of her mouth turning up as she chastely but sweetly kisses Sam's lips. "The guys will be over soon as well."

"I know, they all want to meet her." He sighs softly as he wraps his arms around his fiancés tiny waist. His brows furrow as he frowns and Emily sighs quietly herself, knowing what was bothering him.

"Sam, you can't blame yourself. What happened to that girl is tragic but you couldn't have stopped it, you didn't even know she existed." Her fingertips gently knead the tensed muscles of his neck trying to comfort him.

He sighs, burying his face in her thick, raven colored hair to inhale her soothing jasmine scent. "I know, but she's my half sister. I should've been able to help her more all these years."

"Well we can take care of her now." There was a subtle note of finality in her otherwise soft voice that made him chuckle softly and pull away to look down into her warm brown eyes.

"Yes, we can." He twirls a lock of her hair around his fingertip gently as she glances around the room. "I was just finishing cleaning up. I figured one of us could take her shopping and let her pick out a paint color or whatever she wants."

Emily nods, her eyes making one trip around the bare room before looking up into the nearly black eyes of her fiancé. "I'll take her once she gets settled in. When is her plane coming in?"

"10:30, I should head to Seattle after breakfast and pick her up." Sam kisses Emily's forehead tenderly, brushing her sleep tussled hair away from her face then sighing as he lifts his head. "Jared and Paul are coming up the driveway."

Emily chuckles softly and nods, turning to walk back to their bedroom. "Let me get dressed and I'll start on breakfast."

"Okay, Em." Sam sits gingerly on the edge of the bed and slips the folded up papers from the pocket of his cutoff sweatpants once she's gone, his eyes reading the words he knew by heart already.

 _Stephanie Diana Uley_

 _DOB: January 17_

 _Ward of the state of California, under temporary care of Madeline Evers._

The call had come in almost two months ago, long distance from California. He was told his father had apparently impregnated some waitress from San Fransisco not long after leaving the Rez and the woman had died a couple years ago. His half sister had been bouncing from foster home to foster home until her social worker found the identity of her father and tracked down the last relatives.

He stared down at the photo the woman had sent him. Stephanie was 15 now and there was no denying she had Quiluete blood. She had caramel colored skin a few shades lighter than his own and jet black hair that ran in waves down to her slim hips. In the picture she was facing partially away from the camera but he could make out the carefree smile on her lips and he knew he wanted to protect her from all she was leaving behind in Los Angeles where she had been staying.

"Sam!" Paul called out as he and Jared bounded up onto the porch, walking into the small kitchen where Emily was baking and cooking already.

Sam sighs and slips the papers back into his pocket as he stands up to walk into the kitchen, knowing with two wolves rough housing in Emily's kitchen something was likely to end up broken.


	2. Chapter One

**_Stephanie's POV_**

As I stepped off of the plane, my hands clutching Truth's purple nylon leash like a lifeline, I tried my best not to appear as nervous as I felt. My thoughts were racing so quickly they were barely registering as I let Truth create a walking path for me towards the luggage claim, the sight of my big black puppy trotting happily in front of me making a few people stop and stare.

I let out a soft sigh under my breath and slip the leash around my wrist as I watch the bags slowly roll down the conveyer belt, my eyes searching for either of my duffle bags or my two hardshell suitcases that I had stuffed with all of my clothes and a few keepsakes that hadn't been destroyed since mom died.

I roll my eyes as I overhear a man and woman arguing in the crowd about their kid, the man's voice carrying over the sniffling of the kid and the hoarse, slurring words of the woman. _Feels just like LA; parents arguing, me and Truth waiting to leave, drunk guys fighting..._ Spying the neon lavender exterior of the suitcase that held all of Truth's toys and my other dog supplies. I reach for the handle and snag it, stumbling a bit with the weight of it before setting it down and smiling at my dog.

"Your toys are heavy, baby boy." I giggle quietly as he tilts his head and lets his tongue hang out of his mouth as if he were grinning. A soft tap on my exposed knee makes me look down to my side and I smile softly as I see a dark haired little girl, no older than 5, with a doll clutched to her chest. "Hi, there."

"Hi..." She looks at Truth and tilts her head curiously. "You have a pretty doggy."

I smile and crouch down, scratching Truth behind the ears as I nod. "Thank you, his name is Truth. Would you like to pet him?" She nods and slowly reaches out to run her hand along his head. Truth, being the attention whore that I know him to be, licks her wrist and stands up wanting her to continue.

She giggles and keeps petting him, her small hands petting his sides below the harness I had on him. "What's this?"

"It's called a harness, I had to put this one on him so he could come on the plane with me. See?" I run my nail over the stitching that said Therapy Dog. "He's my therapy dog."

"What does that mean?" She looks up at me and I can't help but smile at her, her childish curiosity helping me relax, worries about meeting my half brother alleviated for a moment.

"He cuddles me and keeps me company when I need it, like a friend." _Exactly like a friend,_ _only more loyal,_ I think to myself as she grins happily at Truth. Slowly I could see him becoming more excited, his heavy tail thumping on the floor as he relishes in the kids attention.

"Aw, that's sweet." She smiles and turns to look back at the couple that had been arguing a bit further down at the end of the belt. "Thank you for letting me pet him."

"You're welcome." I smile at her sympathetically, seeing her eyes start to water again as she watches them argue. Gently I run my fingers through her silky black hair. "He really likes you, you know that? He doesn't let many people pet him like this."

She giggles and wraps her chubby arms around Truth's neck hugging him, her tears forgotten for a moment. "Really? He likes me?" I nod and watch as he licks her cheek, making her giggle more. "I like him too." She smiles and picks her doll up from where she had sat it on the ground.

"What's your name?" I glance over at who I assume are her parents, seeing the woman sipping out of a flask from her purse and the man nowhere in sight. "I'm Stephanie."

"I'm Claire." She smiles at me and hugs her doll to her chest. Before I can reply, the woman calls out.

"Claire, c'mon we're leaving." I sigh softly, a bit sad that the sweet little girl is no doubt going to be sad again later if her mother was already drinking and her father was nowhere to be found. _I know what it's like, Claire. I'm sorry._ My heart breaks a little as she hangs her head and starts to turn around.

I wrap my arms around her small shoulders hugging her gently as I whisper, "It was nice meeting you, Claire. Maybe we'll see each other again sometime."

She nods, a small smile on her lips as she hugs me back and gives Truth one last scratch behind the ears. Even he seems sad as he watches her go, his tail drooping and a soft whine coming from his throat. "I know baby boy, I liked her too." I happen to glance up and see my duffle bags moving down the line past me; I groan and try to reach for the handle, missing it only by an inch and managing to bang my bare knee on the edge of the baggage claim. "Ow, crap..."

A tanned, muscular arm shoots out and grabs them both, holding them out to me by the nylon handles as I clutch Truth's leash nervously, my eyes moving up the arm to the muscular chest and tight white tshirt, then up to the face I had seen only once in a photograph Madeline had given me. I can't help the shy, hopeful smile that blossoms on my lips as I look up into his dark eyes and murmur, "Sam?"

He smiles and nods, casting a slightly wary glance down at Truth. "Yeah. You're Stephanie?" _We have the same nose._ For some reason that thought stuck in my head as I stare into his eyes for a moment then snap out of it as Truth rubs his velvety head on my calf.

I nod and gently tug on the leash as Truth sniffs at Sam's sneakers, his tail wagging and beating against my ankle above my boot. "Yes. Thank you for letting me come...I know it was short notice and everything."

He shakes his head and easily grabs my other suitcase from the conveyer belt without me even having to say anything. I frown slightly, wondering how he knew it was mine then getting distracted from it as he speaks. "No thanks needed, Stephanie, we're family. Is this the last bag?"

I nod and grab the handle of Truth's purple suitcase. "Yeah, sorry I had so many. I had to pack in a hurry when Madeline found you so we didn't have much time to mail anything ahead."

"It's fine. I'll carry them to the truck and we can head to the Rez." He flashes me a soft smile that calms my heart a little and I return it, nodding slowly more to myself than him.

"Alright, as long as you don't mind. I know they must be kind of heavy-" Shockingly, he picks three of them up in his arms, ignoring the rolling wheels on two of them. "Alright then, you're superhumanly strong."

I notice him freeze for a fraction of a second then shrug. "I do construction around the Rez and Forks so I guess it keeps me in shape." I nod, accepting the excuse, and follow him through the thinning crowd, pulling Truth's suitcase behind me and letting him drag me slightly as he trots ahead. _Well this isn't so bad...but I know he'll want to have the talk eventually..._ As I feel my chest starting to tighten up with anxiety, I take a deep breath and close my eyes for a moment, forcing my feet to keep moving to the entrance of the airport even though all I want to do is run away back to LA and Madeline's familiar studio apartment.

 ** _Sam's POV_ **

I smoothed my hands down my thighs over the worn denim of my jeans, my head craning to see if I can see Stephanie in the horde of people exiting the plane. Not catching a glimpse of her there, I head over to the luggage claim knowing she'd be headed there eventually. I stand by the wall dividing the luggage claim from the rest of the airport, my eyes roaming from head to head searching for thick black hair.

"I know, baby boy. I liked her too." The soft, low pitched voice reaches my ears at the same moment my eyes lock onto a tall, raven haired girl looking as out of place as a cactus in the dreary Seattle airport.

She was taller than I expected, at least 5'10", and the tiny denim cutoffs she wore made her legs look a mile long. _The guys are never going to leave her alone._ I sigh at the thought, already knowing Paul would be the first in line. Quietly I make my way over to her just in time to see her struggling to grab her bags, hitting her knee on the bottom of the belt as she stretches to reach. I reach over and easily grab the two matching duffel bags, the subtle scent of rain reaching my nose as I watch Stephanie turn to look at me, the dog beside her sniffing at my shoes curiously. I glance at him warily, not knowing if he'd sense my wolf and act out or not. Luckily, he seems to understand that we meant him and Stephanie no harm and sits down, rubbing his large head against her bare legs just above her battered, navy blue Doc Martens as Stephanie finally speaks.

I give her a comforting smile, hearing her heart racing in her chest as I grab the other bag that carried her scent without bothering to ask. "You're Stephanie?"

She nods and we exchange a couple more pleasantries before we head towards the exit where Em's car was parked. I could hear her heartbeat increase again as we stepped outside and I glance back at her to see her eyes squeezed shut and her fingers twisting the sleeves of her white Hollister hoodie into wrinkly tangles.

 _What could she be thinking about?_ I walk around and easily stow the bags into the trunk, calling out to her quietly. "Stephanie?" When she opens her dark grey-blue eyes, I murmur softly, "Are you alright?"

She nods slowly, taking a deep breath before walking over and stuffing the last bag into the overcrowded trunk. "Just nervous I guess." As she leans over the trunk, I catch a glimpse of a few of the healing bruises on the back of her thighs and feel my wolf stir. _'I can't even imagine what she went through.'_

"Do I make you nervous?" I frown, shutting the trunk and turning to her, seeing her head down and her hair creating an ebony curtain around her face.

Immediately she shakes her head. "No, not you exactly...just this situation." She lets out a soft, nervous laugh and smooths her hair back away from her face. "I've never had a sibling before."

"Neither have I." I smile and grab her hand gently. "We'll get used to it." Her soft smile that showed the tiny dimples on either side of her full, pouty lips warmed my heart knowing that she was able to keep going after what they had done to her.

She nods and leans up, wrapping her slim arms around my shoulders and hugging me, whispering, "I'm glad Madeline found you."

 ** _Emily's POV_**

I had just pulled a tray of muffins from the oven when Jared and Paul walked in, shirtless as usual and glistening with small droplets of rain that evaporated almost inmediately. I sent a soft smile their way as I sat the pan on the table and quickly stepped away to let them fight over them.

After a quick scrap over the biggest muffin, Jared takes a giant bite of his then speaks, "Is Sam still in Seattle?" He looks up at me and I nod, blowing a soft breath out to move my bangs away from my vision.

"Yes, Stephanie's flight came in about an hour ago so they should be here soon." As I turn back to the oven I hear the slight rumble of Sam's truck coming up the drive. Paul and Jared share a glance before Paul leans back, his chair turning on just the back legs as he smirks.

"Alpha's home." Paul crosses his arms behind his head, glancing towards the front door as he frowns slightly, his nostrils flaring as he smells the scent of fresh rain despite the clear skies outside. "What's the kids name again?"

"Her name is Stephanie, and you had better be nice to her." I aim my wooden spoon at him threateningly then laugh softly as he raises his hands in mock defeat, muffin crumbs on his broad chest and chin.

The friendly conversation fell silent as Sam stepped in with bags under each arm, a soft smile on his usually stern face. I return the smile and murmur quietly, "I take it it went well?"

He nods, setting the bags down by the island so that they weren't in the way. "Yeah, we talked a little. She's a good kid." The sound of a loud barking outside made everyones' head turn towards the tall, leggy teenager huddled up against the doorframe with a sheepish smile on her lips.

"Uhm...were you very attached to that bird bath in the yard?" I frown, glancing at Sam then hurrying towards the doorway to see the damage done to the antique my mother had sent as a housewarming gift.

I push gently past Stephanie only to come to a dead stop on the porch when I see a huge black dog sitting in the ceramic bird bath, his leash dangling off the side as he barks at a few birds who were flying like the devil was grinning at them.

"There's a- a..." I trail off, not sure what to say as I feel Sam brush against my back as he steps outside, followed by Paul and Jared, then Stephanie stands in the doorway halfway hidden.

"He's a pitbull labrador mix." She explains quietly, then adds weakly with a strained smile. "His name is Truth."

There's a moment of silence before Paul guffaws, shaking his head as he looks over at Sam and I. I sigh softly, realizing that the bath wasn't really damaged, just full of dog. "Can you please get your dog-" I pause then rephrase, giving her a reassuring smile to relax her. "Can you get Truth down? It's an antique and I'd rather it not be broken."

"Of course, I'm really sorry. He likes birds." She pats her hand on her thigh and Truth's head raises, swiveling in her direction. "Truth, c'mere baby boy!" The black beast catapults out of the bird bath and runs straight to Stephanie, putting his paws up on her stomach and letting his tongue hang out of his mouth as she scratches behind his floppy ears.

"What sort of therapy does he do?" I ask, seeing the harness and the therapy dog tag. She clears her throat softly before looking up at me, running her fingers through Truth's fur and holding him, her hand gripping the thick fur on his shoulders.

"Mostly the certification is just to let him go places where he wouldn't regularly be allowed. People get pissy about pitbulls." She smiles as he rubs his head against her stomach making her giggle. "He's usually well behaved, but he's still a puppy so he gets excited."

I smile softly and nod, turning to walk back inside with the boys. "Well, you should get settled in. The rest of the guys will be here soon for dinner."

"How many more are there?" She mumbles under her breath, barely loud enough for me to hear. I glance at Sam before returning to the kitchen, leaving her in the den with Sam and Paul.

 ** _Stephanie's POV_**

I sat down on the soft, brown suede sectional in the living room and smiled when Truth plopped down between my feet, his tail beating against my ankles like a ping pong ball, back and forth. Sam and the other man- Peter? Paul, maybe?- sat down on either side of me, their heat emanating against me like a furnace and making me feel caged in. I force a small smile at them both before tugging my sleeves over my hands, balling the material up in my fists. "So...are you a long lost sibling too?" I look at the one on my left and grin when I see him sprawled on the couch as if he belonged there. _I hope I'll be that comfortable here one day._

He chuckles, a low, nearly seductive sound that makes me blush. "Nope, just visiting. I'm Paul."

"I'm Stephanie." I can't help but smile, fidgeting with my sleeves as I cast my eyes down on my tanned thighs, only to frown when I see one of the yellowing bruises on my inner thigh. Most likely a fingerprint, it was small and nearly teardrop shaped.

Before I could stare at it any longer, Paul nudged my side and gave me a soft smile as Sam directed his attention to the voices approaching the door. "Just a little warning, the guys are a lot to handle."

"Oh...okay. Thanks." I smiled at him then my eyes widen as a pack of four other boys, the same muscular build as Sam and Paul, all shirtless and wearing only cutoff jean shorts, crowded into the living room.

I could feel the panic start to set in a bit, being surrounded by so many people, but I tried to smile. These were my big brother's friends apparently and I wasn't going to flip out.

The boys paused in front of the sectional, staring at me for a moment before Sam wraps an arm around my shoulders. "Guys, this is Stephanie."

They each gave me some sort of greeting, from nods to smiles, before rushing to the kitchen as Emily calls out that dinner is ready. I watch their stampede, frowning slightly as I wonder if they always come for dinner. I glance at Paul, trusting him more than the others for some reason, only to find he had joined all the other boys in the kitchen, piling his plate high with anything he could get his hands on.

I linger by the doorway, clutching Truth's leash tightly as he stands protectively in front of my legs, probably sensing how nervous I am. "Uhm...Sam?" My voice was barely louder than a whisper but all the heads turned towards me. Sam gives me an encouraging smile and I clear my throat softly, forcing my voice into a normal volume, squeaky tone. "I'm gonna go for a walk- I mean take Truth for a walk."

There's a moment of silence before Sam nods. "The beach is just down the road if you want to go there. Just don't go into the woods."

I nod, feeling my heartbeat pounding in my chest as I tug Truth towards the door, keeping my head down as I move through the sea of muscly, tanned bodies. When I finally step out of the house, I take a deep breath of the cool, damp air and let it out in a heavy sigh, looking down at Truth with a soft smile. "Let's go, baby boy."

He barks at me before trotting down the road, letting me follow leisurely behind him with my hands stuffed into the pockets of my thin Hollister hoodie. _Note to self, shorts are not acceptable in Washington. Must go shopping._

I still had the emergency fund Madeline had set up for me while I was still in the foster home, and I had some money saved from waitressing after school in California, but I didn't want to waste it all on new clothes. My shorts would have to do for now, I guess.

The road soon turned into damp, rocky sand and I could smell the salt from the water in the air. Truth barks at a few blackbirds who dared to fly overhead before I spot a few pieces of driftwood poking up from the sand. I carefully settle myself down onto one of them, using it as a bench as Truth plops down beside me and starts licking his hind leg.

I watch him, then giggle softly as I move my gaze to the water. "It's so different here, Truth...I don't know if I can do this." I sigh, running my fingers through the thick fur behind his ears. He lays his head on my bare thigh and looks at me with his pretty blue eyes, making me smile until a frisbee soars over our heads. Truth is off in an instant, chasing it with the passion only a puppy could possess as I try to hold onto his leash. It slips through my fingers and I call out, "Truth! That isn't yours!"

"It was my fault for tossing it, I didn't know there were any dogs around." A sheepish voice comes from behind me and I turn to him, shaking my head.

My words catch in my throat as I see the tall, skinny boy standing behind me in a pair of jeans and a grey hoodie, a dimpled grin on his lips. I force a tiny smile, reminding myself that this was a fresh start and that no one was going to hurt me here. "Oh, no, it's my fault for not thinking about that before I brought him here. I just needed some fresh air."

Truth trots over with the soaking wet, red plastic disc in his jaws and drops it at the boy's feet, his tail wagging happily. The boy crouches down, still smiling as he scratches Truth behind the ears. "Good boy. What's his name?"

"Truth." I murmur, relaxing a bit since Truth seemed to have warmed up to him quickly.

"Cool name." He didn't ask about the therapy harness and for that, I was grateful. "I'm Seth, by the way. Are you new here?"

I could feel the blush rising on my cheeks as I dig the toe of my boot into the sand. "It's that obvious, huh?"

"Not really. I just think I'd remember seeing a pretty girl with a big, black dog." His cheeks flushed as well and I felt better about my own burning face.

"Thanks...I just moved in with my half-brother. I'm Stephanie." I blow a strand of hair away from my face and laugh quietly as Truth falls backwards in the sand between Seth and I, belly to the sky. "I think you just became his favorite person."

He laughs and scratches Truth's belly, looking up at me. "Nah, he just likes me for my frisbee." I carefully crouch beside them, resting my sore knees in the sand as I rub Truth's head, smiling.

"True, true." Our hands brushed against each other's and we immediately pulled away, leaving Truth to whine at us. "Uhm...so..."

"So...you're going to the tribal school, right?" The blush was back and he had stuffed his hands into his hoodie pockets. We both stood up, much to Truth's disappointment.

"Yup, starting next week. I'll be a sophomore." I tried not to let the nerves show up as I imagined walking into an unknown school filled with unknown people.

His face lit up and he grinned, nearly bouncing on the balls of his feet. The thought struck me that he reminded me of Truth: easily excited but truly sweet to the core. "Me too! Maybe we'll have some classes together."

"Maybe. It would be nice to know one person, at least." I mumble, looking down at the small trench I had dug out with my foot.

He nods and smiles, running his fingers through his shaggy black hair. "I could introduce you to some people, if you wanted. There aren't a lot of people who go to our school."

"That sounds good." I smile, unable to stop myself as I let his cheerfulness rub off on me.

"Great!" He glances at the chunky black watch on his wrist and sighs, "Crap, I have to go. Mom will ground me if I'm late to dinner."

"I guess I should go too. I kinda ran out on dinner with my brother and his friends." I blush, ducking my head in shame as I twirl Truth's leash around my wrist.

"Why?" He sounded genuinely confused and I peeked up to see if his face matched his voice. It did; he looked like a befuddled puppy.

I tried to smother my giggle with my hand, passing it off as a cough before responding. "It just got too overwhelming, I suppose. Too many people I didn't know." I shrug and he nods.

"Well, if you ever want another escape you could come to my house. It's just my parents, my sister, and me. And most of the time, Leah stays in her room so..." He shrugs, his cheeks flushed a bright pink shade.

I smile, a little touched by his kindness. "I might do that one day. For now though, I think I better go back before they think I ran away."

"Probably a good idea. I'll see you around sometime, it was nice meeting you." He says, patting Truth's head gently in farewell before turning to walk back up the beach.

"It was nice meeting you too, Seth." I smile as I watch him walk away for a moment before turning to walk back to Sam's house.


End file.
